A Puppy for Christmas
I have had five important dogs in my life but I've never gotten a puppy for Christmas, one of my longest-standing wishes. This year, my wish came true, or at least pretty close. It wasn't quite Christmas and she's not a puppy any more, but you get the idea. Two days after Christmas, we were approved for adoption and Cora was delivered to our house.
I heard about Smiley Dog Rescue from my friend the Evil Empress who has fostered dogs for them and even adopted one of her fosterees, the delightfully goofy Dell. Smiley Dog is a good organization, staffed with caring volunteers who take animals out of kill shelters and keep them until the right home comes along.
I had seen Cora's picture three months before on the Smiley Dog Rescue web site (www.smileydogrescue.org, if you are looking for a dog to love), but two emergency trips to Connecticut and a vacation to Hawaii intervened, so I wasn't at all sure she'd end up with us. I filled out the adoption application and hoped for the best, keeping in touch with Smiley Dog all that time, letting them know what was happening and, while they didn't make any promises, they kindly kept her a little longer.
Initially, I thought I'd probably change her name, as Cora seemed like an old lady who smells of lavender but now that she's been with us for less than a day, I think we'll keep it. She is very ladylike in the house, very gentle when she takes food from your hand, quiet (except when the leash appears and there's a chance of a walk - then, she becomes a whirling dervish of delighted excitability) and sweet-natured. At the dog park, she's all Border Collie (although there are clearly some other genes in there, too), running like the wind, herding the other dogs and playing boisterously, but at home she's refined, calm and peaceful, as if she had crocheted doilies on her end tables.
Cora. Corazon. Perfect.
I heard about Smiley Dog Rescue from my friend the Evil Empress who has fostered dogs for them and even adopted one of her fosterees, the delightfully goofy Dell. Smiley Dog is a good organization, staffed with caring volunteers who take animals out of kill shelters and keep them until the right home comes along.
I had seen Cora's picture three months before on the Smiley Dog Rescue web site (www.smileydogrescue.org, if you are looking for a dog to love), but two emergency trips to Connecticut and a vacation to Hawaii intervened, so I wasn't at all sure she'd end up with us. I filled out the adoption application and hoped for the best, keeping in touch with Smiley Dog all that time, letting them know what was happening and, while they didn't make any promises, they kindly kept her a little longer.
Initially, I thought I'd probably change her name, as Cora seemed like an old lady who smells of lavender but now that she's been with us for less than a day, I think we'll keep it. She is very ladylike in the house, very gentle when she takes food from your hand, quiet (except when the leash appears and there's a chance of a walk - then, she becomes a whirling dervish of delighted excitability) and sweet-natured. At the dog park, she's all Border Collie (although there are clearly some other genes in there, too), running like the wind, herding the other dogs and playing boisterously, but at home she's refined, calm and peaceful, as if she had crocheted doilies on her end tables.
Cora. Corazon. Perfect.
Labels: Cora, Smiley Dog Rescue
13 Comments:
What a lovely addition to your family.
Oh wow! Delightful. Now, never mention heart, crusty and yours in the same sentence again!
She's beautiful, those eyebrows. You are so very lucky, give her a tummy rub from me.
I'm so impressed! I'm happy for you. How delightful that you got a NICE dog. (My dog is very nice, but he prefers Cranky to me, and it breaks my heart a little. But he will snuggle with me in bed if I'm the only one there.)
Bean Sprout can't wait to meet her.
Cora looks lovely. She looks very lady-like indeed.
I'm thrilled for you! And I love her name because it does sound like it fits her personality exactly! Getting my dog made a huge difference in my life at a very hard time - maybe Cora will help heal your heart too! Congratulations!
She looks like my dog Grace. If she is anything like Grace she will make an excellent addition to your household.
A
I'm so delighted that you ended up with Cora, and can't wait to meet her in person!
Kailyn, she's a peach!
Nancy, okay, okay, I hear you! :-)
Morgan - yes, I love the eyebrows, too. She says thanks for the tummy rub!
Cookiecrumb, I think Cora is tending toward male adoration, too. My Beloved is very flattered.
Nerissa, she is, except when excited with other dogs around.
Michelle, she is very loving and that helps.
Anonymous, Grace would have been another good name for this girl! She's a lovely "mover."
Evlmprs, I'll meet you at Point Isabel for a latte once I'm confident that Cora will stick with me! :-)
Awwwww!
As you might have noticed, I'm a wee bit partial to dogs and she looks super sweet. Cora is perfect!
KatieZ, she's a peach - really a lovely good dog (aren't they all?) and we are tickled pink to have her!
Actually, the name Cora is coming back into vogue--three friends of mine have named their babies Cora in the past year!
I'm partial to it b/c it was my great-grandmother's name:-)
She looks like a sweetheart--I'm so glad you found each other.
Also, did you know you were quoted in Sunset magazine? Dec 2008 issue--saw it yesterday and gave a little whoop for you!
Also--Mia is so much bigger, but no less adorable and sweet from the sound of it. How lovely. Here's to heart melting:-)
HNY to you!
Tea, what fun to get a comment from you! HNY to you, too! Yes, Mia is so tall now - must get that from her Dad - and talking semi-intelligibly, too! I didn't know about the Sunset thing - I'll have to check my copy! Any hints as to where to find it?
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